


Bravebird

by cyndario



Series: Shudun Ryder | Seasons Change [10]
Category: Mass Effect, Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Developing Relationship, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-27
Updated: 2017-04-27
Packaged: 2018-10-24 13:00:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10742199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cyndario/pseuds/cyndario
Summary: She was alive.





	Bravebird

_She was alive._

Shudun walked through the Tempest, the rush from escaping the Archon’s flagship still coursing through her veins. Too much energy, thoughts, emotions over their ordeal were flitting around inside. She needed to get it out, couldn't keep still. So Shudun walked, trailing her hands along the metal and wood in the vidcon room, feeling the grooves and cold seep into her skin. Closing her eyes as she felt the dull warmth of the light panels overhead as she descended towards her quarters. Embracing the shift of sensations, the sounds on board the ship. The voices of her crew, the lapse into silence the further she moved away.

_She was alive._

But she had died--twice now. Third time was usually the charm, as the saying goes. If she was being honest, though, she was afraid for when that time finally came. The finality. Would she be reunited with her mother? Would it be an eerie nothingness that fully engulfed her? Did she even want to find out?

_She was--_

The loud, almost deafening echo of forceful footfalls jerked Shudun out her reverie. Turning to see over her shoulder, she had hardly a moment to react before Jaal was upon her, his hands reaching for her shoulders, turning and pulling her close. His breath was labored, the soft insistence of his kisses littering across any ounce of available skin he could find. Her forehead. Her cheeks. Her nose. Her eyelids. Shudun reveled in his embrace, clutching her fingers into the fabric of his rofjinn as she buried further into his chest.

“Dearest, they told me what happened. That you died…” Jaal trailed off, his voice breaking. Shudun felt as his hands cradled her cheeks and made her to look in his eyes. She watched as the tears fell down his face and reached up to wipe them away with the backs of her knuckles.

“Yeah… but I’m better now.” She joked softly, offering a gentle smile.

Jaal released a choked laugh, leaning forward to press his forehead on her own. His breathing was still shaky, an intermittent stutter whenever he inhaled.

“How are you so _calm_?” He wondered aloud, and Shudun closed her eyes as she felt the warmth of his exhale tickle her skin.

“Lexi fussed at me about that, too. I didn't… Jaal I didn’t want to die. That was the only way… at the time.” She defended, her voice small. Her fear weakened her voice, cracking it as she struggled to find the words. Jaal felt her burrow further into his embrace and placed another kiss on her forehead, shooting tiny sparks of his bioelectricity through his touch. He rested his chin atop her head once he felt her relaxing. Her hair was loose now, the silky strands tickling his skin and her scent wafting into his nostrils. Shudun’s soft exhales warmed his skin through his clothes, the little puffs of breath right in the center of his chest.

“Do not scare me like that again.” He chided, his voice nearly a whisper, and Shudun had to laugh at the irony.

Oh, how the tables had turned.

“I’ll try.” She whispered back, and Jaal laughed along with her.

“Oh dearest, we are what you humans call ‘a mess’.”

“I was thinking the same thing, babe.” Their quiet laughs faded off, the growing silence their cocoon as they clung to one another. Jaal’s hands trailed a soothing motion along the expanse of her spine, his electrical current sending a warmth that seeped into her muscles, relaxing her further as they embraced. Shudun released a soft sigh, turning her head to rest her cheek upon his chest, his heartbeat echoing in her ears.

“Jaal.”

“Yes?”

“Can we stay … like this? Just a little longer?” Shudun asked softly, tilting her head to look up into his face. Jaal nodded once as he trailed a digit along her cheek.

“As long as you need. I’m not leaving.”

Outside her door they stood, wrapped up in one another's embrace. Fingers and kisses trailing softly along exposed skin. Promises and sweet words whispered in the quiet space. A single relief shared between the two of them.

_She was alive._

**Author's Note:**

> I'd like to think someone would be more sympathetic to Ryder dying after facing the Archon on his flagship. 
> 
> This was for Shudun.


End file.
